It was a singular pleasure to interview Touré, the journalist, TV host and cogent cultural/political critic and music writer. Touré is a blunt, deep thinker with a podcast worthy of your attention, and I've long admired his work.
The author of "I Would Die 4 U: Why Prince Became an Icon" just posted a terrific interview with Lady Gaga on Toure.com. This is about a tenth of my conversation with Touré, who becomes even more endearing when he talks about his wife and kids. Check out the video at startribune.com.
Q: How much had you heard about Prince and drugs before the emergency plane stop in Illinois?
A: I had heard a lot about that, but what I had heard was that Prince was constitutionally against using drugs throughout his life. Folks talked about him as a teenager, in his 20s when "Purple Rain" was hot, in his 30s, not using drugs, not drinking. Even eschewing caffeine and coffee. I spent a lot of time talking to people about how is it he was working for three days in a row, recording a song a day, and how he accomplished so much. They said he was just filled with the spirit, this energy, drive and determination. To learn that this became part of his life as he got older isn't to me a real comment about him; it's that he fell into what so many Americans are dealing with: prescription drugs, self medication, becoming addicted because they are trying to deal with pain.
Q: Have you bought a ticket to the Paisley Park museum tour?
A: I have not. I would absolutely go. I've been to Paisley Park once. I will be very interested to see what it will become in this new iteration. It's going to be part museum, part performance space and part recording venue. It's going to be a vibrant place, not a dead place, like Graceland.
Q: How many times did you interview Prince?
A: I interviewed Prince twice within one story. We had a half-hour interview in a conference room where I had to go through all his Shakespearean language, posturing and sort of playing with me. I had to write it down, couldn't record it. Looking at my notes afterward, for many sentences I had no idea what he was talking about, even though I know I wrote that down exactly. But when we were talking more on the basketball court, he was very natural, very himself. I think that's where I got down to the real man who loved to play, compete, be one of the boys. Loved to win.
